Elizabeth Bennet was incensed

Elizabeth Bennet was incensed, Pride and Prejudice Fanfiction

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Elizabeth Bennet was incensed.

Not one, but two, men she detested had asked for her hand in marriage on the very same day! No sooner had the obsequious Mr. Collins left than the equally offensive Mr. Darcy had walked in. Mr. Darcy's insulting proposal was even more irksome than that of Mr. Collins! Mr. Darcy's words, she could not help but think, were calculated to offend and remind her of her own inferiority. He stood before her now, eyes dark with desire, awaiting her response.

"I would be lying to you, Mr. Darcy, if I told you the feelings you have expressed were equalled by my own. You might be interested to know that scarcely an hour before you arrived, my cousin the Rev. Collins asked for my hand in marriage, an offer which I refused.

"Yet, Mr. Darcy, I am not inclined to reject your proposals out of hand. You have much more to offer me than Mr. Collins does. You insult me, Sir, with your appraisal of my family and connections, so if my response insults you, then so be it.

"So yes, I will marry you, Mr. Darcy. I will be a good and dutiful wife to you and a devoted mother to your children. But I do not love you and I never will, and I want you to know that now so that you may withdraw your offer if you so choose."

Mr. Darcy's response was a curious one.

"Mr. Collins? Mr. Collins had the temerity to think you would consider an offer of marriage?"

How conveniently he had ignored the words that had followed Elizabeth's disclosure of Mr. Collins' proposal!

"Temerity, Mr. Darcy? As you have as much as said yourself, Mr. Collins is more my equal in rank than you are, Sir. A connection with him would not be as...what was the word you used...'reprehensible' as one with you!"

Mr. Darcy colored. "Perhaps that was an unfortunate choice of words on my part, Miss Bennet."

"Not at all, Mr. Darcy. I appreciate your honesty and only want to reciprocate it with my own."

"So you are saying you will marry me, Miss Bennet, although you do not share my affection?"

Elizabeth was almost ashamed of what she was about to say, measuring her words to deliberately wound him as he had wounded her.

"I do not even like you, Mr. Darcy. But as both you and Mr. Collins have so aptly pointed out, the inferiority of my connections makes it unlikely so superior a match will ever come my way again."
"You will marry a man you do not even like, Miss Bennet? For what reasons?"

"Your rank. Your wealth. The security such a marriage will bring to my family."

There, she thought defiantly. Surely her words would be enough to send the man directly out the door, never to return again.

But she was wrong. Darcy looked away for a moment, then back at her again, his face expressionless.

"Very well, Miss Bennet. When may I speak to your father?"

Elizabeth was shocked.

"Mr. Darcy, in light of what I have told you, you are still desirous of this marriage?"

"Miss Bennet," he said wearily. "I am accustomed to being courted for my wealth and position. Many women have...but that is of no consequence now. You are the woman I want, and if the material benefits I bring to marriage are what have won you, then so be it. I would have wished..." His voice trailed off.

He reached inside his vest and withdrew a small blue velvet box and handed it to her.

"Here, Miss Bennet. You may consider this a down payment of sorts. I assure you, there is much more to be had if you fulfill your half of this bargain," he said, a trace of bitterness creeping into his voice.

She opened the lid of the box to reveal an exquisite ring of rubies and diamonds.

"Who can find a virtuous woman," he quoted sarcastically, "for her price is far above rubies."

Elizabeth stared at him. "Mr. Darcy, I cannot..."

"Of course you can, Miss Bennet. I had planned to place that ring on your finger myself, but I find I am anxious to speak to your father before you have the opportunity to change your mind. You will excuse me," he said, and strode purposefully out of the drawing room in the direction of Mr. Bennet's study.

Only when his back was turned and she could not observe his face did he allow his impassive expression to crumple into one of grief and desolation.

After just fifteen minutes, Mr. Darcy, looking quite grim, returned to Elizabeth.

"Your father would like to see you immediately," he said.

Mr. Bennet barely waited until Elizabeth closed the library door behind her to exclaim, "Are you out of your senses accepting this man, Lizzy? Have you not always hated him?"
"I can not lie to you, Father. I am not in love with Mr. Darcy, nor had I ever seriously considered marrying him until today. I realize he can be proud and disagreeable, but he has surprised me with how strongly he professed his affection for me."

"Please, my child. Do not marry without affection! No good will come of it."

"I must tell you, Father, that Mr. Darcy's was not the only proposal that was made to me today. Mr. Collins also requested my hand in marriage, and I promptly refused him. He informed me that I should be aware that another offer of marriage, because of my lack of dowry and connections, might never come my way, and I must admit his remarks gave me pause. So whan Mr. Darcy made his addresses a short time later, I found myself giving him greater consideration than I might have previously.

"I am not certain that I will ever find a suitable man to love. And perhaps my betrothal to Mr. Darcy will make it more likely that Jane and Mr. Bingley will marry as well."

"But did you not tell me, Elizabeth, that Mr. Darcy discouraged Mr. Bingley in his attachment to Jane?"

"Yes, but do you not see how ludicrous it would seem for Mr. Darcy to disparage the Bennet family to Mr. Bingley now that he is making the undesirable connection himself?"

"Oh Lizzy, Lizzy," Mr. Bennet said, taking her hands in his. "Undesirable connection? Please do not continue in this manner. How do you justify marrying a man whom you rightly hold in such disdain?"

"You know full well that I must marry, Father, and all the better if I am able to marry well. Mr. Darcy says he loves me, and although I rather doubt he understands the emotion, I do not think he will be unkind to me. I can bear being married to him as well as I could any other, and the future of my family will be secured."

Mr. Bennet hung his head. "You shame me, Lizzy. Securing my family's future is my own responsibility, and I have failed you all miserably. And now I must watch you marry a man you neither love nor respect."

Elizabeth blinked back tears.

"All will be well, Father," she said, bending to kiss his forehead. "I promise you."

Darcy was waiting for her in the drawing room, and he was dismayed at the sadness of her expression. This evening was so different from how he had envisioned it. Yes, he had assumed she would be surprised at his declaration, shy at his ardour, reticent at expressing her own feelings. He had been confident she would be overjoyed at his proposals, not that he flattered himself she was as ardently in love with him as he was with her, but that she at least found him appealing and worthy of her admiration.
What a fool he had been. But he wanted her so badly that he would take her as his wife on any terms, and he knew she was an honourable woman who would live up to her marriage vows.

But she did not love him, and it hurt. And not only did she not love him, she had emphatically declared that she never would. Could he live with her for the rest of his life, sleep in her bed and look upon her with love and longing, knowing she was indifferent to him? Could he bear to look into her beautiful eyes and never see his love returned?

These were his thoughts as she came back to him, as she sat opposite him next to the fire.

"Elizabeth..." he said haltingly. "Will you allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you?"

His voice was so soft, his words so sincere, that she felt compelled to look at him, really look at him this time

"I believe you spoke of love earlier, Mr. Darcy," she said shortly, willing herself to push aside any tender feelingss his words evoked. The inferiority of my connections. The impropriety of my family. Those were the words she forced herself to remember!

"Yes, I spoke of love, but perhaps I spoke of other things that would have been better left unsaid. I wish I might retract those words, Elizabeth."

"But you cannot, Sir, and even if you had expressed yourself in a more gentlemanlike manner, your sentiments would remain."

Darcy felt as though he had been slapped.

"Elizabeth," he said finally. "Have you ever been in love?"

"No," she said honestly. "I have not."

"Good," he said, with a little smile. "Then I at least have a chance of being the first, and the only. May I kiss your hand?"

"You may," she replied, knowing she would feel foolish if she refused.

He took her hand in his, raised it to his lips and kissed the inside of her palm. He then took it and held it against his heart, which was beating rapidly.

"I will leave you now. Thank you, Elizabeth. You have made me very happy tonight."

She merely nodded in response, and after one long look, he was gone.

Chapter 2

Ironically, for Elizabeth, informing her mother of her engagement to Mr. Darcy was a pleasure compared to informing the other members of her family. Jane, although more quiet in her disapproval than Mr. Bennet, looked at Elizabeth with so much disappointment in her eyes that Elizabeth had to look away. Mrs. Bennet, as might have been anticipated, was embarrassing in her rapture at the news.

"Oh, Lizzy, how great and fine you will be! What jewels! What carriages! Pray tell me what dishes Mr. Darcy favors, that I may order them for tonight's dinner."

How typical of her mother, thought Lizzy, that she was thinking of jewels and carriages when Lizzy herself was thinking of her mother and sisters having a place to live upon her father's death. With the Longbourn estate entailed away from the female line, her concern was pressing and legitimate.

Mr. Collins had not been seen since the previous afternoon, when Elizabeth had refused his proposal of marriage. Unbeknownst to the Bennets, he had spent the previous evening at Lucas Lodge, ingratiating himself with Charlotte Lucas, to whom he had hastily transferred his affections. They were shocked when Charlotte appeared at Longbourn to announce their engagement. Elizabeth, in particular, was astounded that Charlotte could ally herself to such an idiot of a man! Charlotte was equally astounded to learn of Elizabeth's engagement to Mr. Darcy, as she had been privy to Elizabeth's intense dislike of the man.

The two friends knew that with each other, at least, they could be totally honest. So they hastened to find the opportunity to walk together outside where they could discuss the changes in their respective situations in privacy.

"Lizzy! You are marrying Mr. Darcy? Did you not say you detested the man?"

"Yes, I know, Charlotte. Not only because of his rudeness in terming me 'not handsome enough' to tempt him, but because of his interference with Bingley and Jane."

"What interference, Lizzy? Do you know this for fact?"

"I overheard him, Charlotte, when I was at Netherfield. He and Bingley's oh-so-superior sisters were discussing Jane's slim chances...both our chances, really...of making good marriages in view of our undesirable Cheapside connections! Bingley, to his credit, said he wouldn't find us a jot less agreeable had we uncles enough to fill all of Cheapside, but I know how much stock he puts in Mr. Darcy's opinions. And at the Netherfield Ball, I saw Mr. Darcy assessing Jane and Bingley with such...such...alarm on his face!"

"And what makes you so certain your marrying him will change his opinion of Jane's marrying Bingley?"
"I care not whether he changes his opinion. But I will not marry him unless he curtails his actions!"

"Ah, Lizzy, I see! You think yourself to have much power over Mr. Darcy, do you not?" Charlotte said teasingly.

Lizzy rolled her eyes. "Apparently so, Charlotte, if he is willing to overlook all my family's shortcomings and marry me in spite of them!"

"I hope you are right, Lizzy! I, for one, think Mr. Darcy will be rather more difficult to control than you may hope!"

Elizabeth took Charlotte's hands. "And you, Charlotte? What of your marrying Mr. Collins?"

"I am 27, Lizzy, and I am no romantic. I have no delusions about my beauty or prospects. Apparently I cannot command as high a 'price' in the marriage market as you can!"

Lizzy could think of no appropriate response to such a remark.

"And then, Charlotte, there is the business with Mr. Wickham."

"Lizzy, you know my opinion on that subject! You have no confirmation of Mr. Wickham's accusations. You know only what Mr. Wickham has told you himself!"

"But he had every indication of sincerity in his words and manner, Charlotte."

"I am surprised at your credulousness, Lizzy, it is so unlike you! He is far too 'sincere' and forthcoming for my liking. I always found his candor in such matters quite improper. And did he not indicate that Mr. Darcy's being at Netherfield would not interfere with his presence at the ball? Why, then, was he not in attendance? And, more pointedly, where has he been since then?"

As though in answer to her question, the man himself arrived on horseback just as the two ladies turned in the lane toward Meryton. He dismounted and kissed both their gloved hands.

"Miss Bennet! Miss Lucas! Always a pleasure!"

"How good to see you again, Mr. Wickham," Elizabeth answered, her heart fluttering a bit in spite of herself. He was so very amiable and handsome.

"Good morning, Mr. Wickham," Charlotte said with far less enthusiasm than her friend.

"I wanted to apologize, Miss Bennet, for my failing to attend the ball at Netherfield. Important business required my immediate attention, I am afraid."
Elizabeth smiled, but Charlotte looked at her meaningfully. Elizabeth knew the intent of her glance. At the Netherfield ball, Mr. Denny had communicated his belief that Mr. Wickham's absence was due not to business, but to his reluctance to encounter Mr. Darcy, and Charlotte hoped Elizabeth remembered this.

"Your presence was missed, I assure you, Mr. Wickham," Elizabeth said.

"I am gratified to hear it, Miss Bennet," he responded.

"Missed by whom, Miss Bennet?" boomed an angry voice, and the threesome turned to see a red-faced Mr. Darcy approaching them on foot.

"How dare you?" Elizabeth whispered.

He ignored her question and looked directly at Mr. Wickham.

"I would ask you to stay away from my fiancee, Mr. Wickham. In fact, I do not ask it, I demand it."

Wickham visibly stiffened and stared at Elizabeth, Darcy close behind her, towering over her. Charlotte, mortified, did not quite know where to look!

"Your fiancee! I am all astonishment," Wickham leered. "Apparently you are more practical than I gave you credit for, Miss Bennet. May I offer my felicitations."

Something in Darcy's expression made Elizabeth fear for Wickham's safety, and she restrained him with a hand on his arm.

Wickham bowed sardonically, mounted his horse, and rode away.

Darcy, seething with anger, was breathing hard and fast. He looked directly at Elizabeth and said, "I forbid you to speak to that man ever again, Miss Bennet. Do you understand?"

"You forbid me, Mr. Darcy?" she repeated incredulously.

Oh dear, Mr. Darcy, thought Charlotte! Very unfortunate choice of words. Apparently Mr. Darcy had a lot to learn about Elizabeth Bennet!

"Mr. Wickham is my friend, Mr. Darcy," Elizabeth said, barely controlling her anger.

"And he is a highly unsuitable friend for you. For any young lady!"

"Apparently he has been so unfortunate as to lose your friendship, Mr. Darcy, in a manner he will feel for the rest of his life."
As if he had noticed Charlotte for the first time, Darcy said "This is neither the time nor the place, Miss Bennet. We will discuss this when it is appropriate."

Charlotte coughed. "I believe I will be getting along now, Elizabeth, Mr. Darcy. Mr. Collins is awaiting me at Lucas Lodge."

Darcy bowed.

"Good day, Miss Lucas."

After her departure, he turned to Elizabeth.

"Mr. Collins?"

"Yes, Mr. Collins. Apparently he wasted no time in finding a suitable replacement when he failed in securing my hand. I am sure you can easily do likewise if need be."

"Look at me, Elizabeth," Darcy said dangerously.

"I am no Mr. Collins. There could be no replacement, Elizabeth. If I do not marry you, I marry no one. Can I make it any plainer how I feel about you?"

"I am flattered, Sir. And what of Mr. Bingley?"

"Of what are you speaking, Elizabeth?"

"Mr. Bingley. If you will not allow him to marry Jane, whom will you condescend to allow him to marry?"

"Bingley is an adult. He may marry whom he pleases. Do I encourage him in his affections toward your sister? No, I do not."

"Why not, Mr. Darcy?" Elizabeth shouted. "Because of our unsuitable family? Because of our lack of fortune? Such considerations were not enough to prevent you from making your addresses to me!"

"No, Elizabeth, they were not. I chose to ignore them. But they weren't the only reasons I discouraged Bingley in his attentions to your sister."

"What other reasons might you have, Sir? Pray, enlighten me."

"I watched them together, most carefully," he replied. "I have often seen Bingley in love, he is fickle in his attentions. I thought nothing of his attachment until the night of the Netherfield Ball, when I suspected he was falling in love with her. But on your sister's countenance, I saw no sign of particular regard. I want better for my friend, Miss Bennet, than I require for myself."
"Better in what respect, Mr. Darcy?" she demanded.

"A wife who loves and esteems him, Miss Bennet," he said simply.

Elizabeth laughed bitterly, seeing the irony in the situation.

"But she does love him, Mr. Darcy, of that I can assure you. I ask not that you foster his regard, just that you do nothing to prevent it. Do you agree?"

"Alright, Miss Bennet. I assume that is one of the requirements I must meet in order to secure your hand. May I ask what the others might be?"

"There is only one other, Mr. Darcy. As you may know, there is an entailment on my father's estate, and he has no male heir. Simply put, upon my father's death, my mother, my sisters, and I will be at the mercy of Mr. Collins. So all I ask is that you guarantee a suitable home for my mother and sisters when that unhappy event occurs."

"Ah, but Miss Bennet, if I, as you put it, do not prevent Mr. Bingley from marrying your sister, I have no doubt Bingley would take in the lot of you. What inducement, then, would there be for your marrying me?"

Elizabeth, shocked, looked up, and saw the smile on his lips. Was Mr. Darcy joking with her?

"None whatsoever, Mr. Darcy. I am afraid you will have to take me at my word."

"And this is truly all you require, Elizabeth?"

"Yes."

For some reason, Darcy rejoiced at her simple affirmation. Elizabeth, he was sure, was no fortune hunter. Everything she wanted, she wanted not for herself, but for the people she loved - loved so much, in fact, that she was willing to forego her own happiness to secure theirs. How blissful it would be to be loved so devotedly by Elizabeth Bennet. Would he ever know such a love? He was also most thankful that Elizabeth had not specified that her mother and sisters must abide at Pemberley, only that he must secure them a suitable home! Perhaps such close proximity to her mother would be no more to Elizabeth's liking than it would be to his own.

His thoughts were interrupted by her soft voice.

"And now, Mr. Darcy, you must fulfill your earlier promise to enlighten me about Mr. Wickham."

Darcy nodded, gravely.
"I know enough of you, Miss Bennet, to be assured this conversation will go no further. What I am about to tell you is painful to relate, and even more painful to remember, and I hope when I am finished you will understand why I forbid...why I strongly request that you have nothing further to do with Mr. Wickham."

Chapter 3

As Darcy spoke, with mounting emotion, of the circumstances relating to Mr. Wickham's connection to his family, Elizabeth could not help but note how Mr. Wickham had given his version of the tale enough resemblance to truth to make it believable. Much of the history was similar.

He was, indeed, the son of Darcy's father's steward, raised alongside Darcy when the elder Mr. Wickham died. All the advantages of being the scion of an old and noble family were his, save the Darcy name itself: a life of privilege at Pemberley, a Cambridge education. And if the younger Darcy observed flaws in Mr. Wickham's character as they came of age, he kept them to himself to spare his father's sensibilities.

But upon reaching adulthood, Wickham would have to make his own way in the world, armed with a gentleman's education and the Darcy family connection. Upon the elder Darcy's death, Mr. Wickham was bequeathed a respectable living in the Church, at the parsonage at Kympton. Wickham had told Elizabeth that Darcy had flatly refused to honor his father's bequest.

And here was where Darcy's version of the events differed from Wickham's. Wickham refused the living, Darcy said, and demanded payment in its stead. Knowing by now that Wickham's character was not suitable for a career in the Church, Darcy agreed, settling a generous sum upon Wickham.

At this point in the story, Darcy hesitated and looked at Elizabeth.

"Not only had I lost both my parents, Miss Bennet, at this juncture I felt I had lost a brother as well. An errant brother, but a brother nonetheless."

Elizabeth was stunned. There was such pain in Mr. Darcy's eyes as he made this disclosure. From this moment, any doubt she may have felt about the veracity of Mr. Darcy's story was dispelled.

He composed himself to continue.

"And now, Miss Bennet, I must bring myself to tell you of events which are far more painful than those I have already related.

"As I told you, Mr. Wickham accepted a payment of 3000 pounds in lieu of the living bequeathed him by my father. He indicated that he wished to study the law. I had doubts as to his true intentions, but I hoped he was being sincere.

"I lost all contact with him for an extended period. Our paths crossed again this summer, in a manner I would wish to forget. Save for the deaths of my parents, I do not think I have ever experienced more trying times than these.
"My sister, Georgiana, who is but fifteen years old, was on holiday at Ramsgate. Unbeknownst to myself, Wickham was there as well, undoubtedly by design, and ingratiated himself with her, convincing her that she was in love with him, and inducing her to agree to an elopement. Of course, his object was my sister's fortune of 30,000 pounds. That, and taking revenge on me, Miss Bennet! If he could not be a Darcy, he would marry one! With no female guidance and a brother who was derelict in his duty as guardian, Georgiana was persuaded of his love and agreed to his reprehensible plan.

"By divine Providence, I am convinced, I had the notion to visit my sister at Ramsgate on the day before she was to elope with the scoundrel. Unable to bear the thought of grieving an elder brother who was almost a father to her, Georgiana disclosed the plan to me at once. You can imagine how I felt, and how I acted. Mr. Wickham was sent away at once, and Georgiana returned with me to Pemberley. She has not been herself since, Elizabeth, consumed with grief over Wickham's easy desertion and guilt over the pain she perceives herself as having inflicted on me, no matter how fervently I assure her that the guilt should be mine in having neglected my duty as her guardian. When I came to Netherfield at Bingley's insistence, it was the first occasion I had left Georgiana since we returned from Ramsgate. Imagine my shock and dismay upon discovering Wickham here as a member of the militia, and made welcome by unsuspecting young women such as yourself.

"And so, Miss Bennet, if I was perhaps overstepping myself in forbidding you to associate with Mr. Wickham, please try to understand that my demand was made because of my esteem and concern for you. If only I had been as explicit with my sister.."

Any success Elizabeth had had up until this point in suppressing her emotions was lost. The tears flowed freely down her cheeks as she spoke.

"Mr. Darcy, please do not blame yourself for Wickham's wrongdoing. Your sister's sheltered life and her trust of a man who was almost a brother to her explains her easy acceptance of his assurances."

"So you believe me, then, Miss Bennet?"

"Yes, Mr. Darcy."

Searching her face for signs of any emotion except compassion and understanding and finding none, he nodded and said gruffly, "Good." He handed her his handkerchief so that she could wipe the tears from her face.

"Mr. Darcy, shall I inform our general acquaintance of Mr. Wickham's true character?"

"I would rather you did not, Elizabeth. I do not see how it would be possible to be explicit enough for the information to be of any value without revealing my sister's situation."
"You are right, Mr. Darcy. It is my understanding that Mr. Wickham's regiment will be leaving soon after Christmas in any event."

"Elizabeth?"

"Yes, Mr. Darcy?"

"I would ask, that is, I would prefer, that you call me by my Christian name. We are still betrothed, are we not?"

The uncertainty that had crept into his voice surprised Elizabeth. Even more surprising to her was her sudden, unexpected desire to reassure him.

"Yes, we are, Fitzwilliam," she responded.

"When I called at Longbourn, not knowing that you were out walking with Charlotte, your mother asked that I join your family for dinner tomorrow evening. I take it such an invitation is acceptable to you as well, Elizabeth?"

"Of course it is, if you think you can bear the company of all my family assembled in the same small room at one time!"

"May I ask Mr. Bingley to accompany me? I know he is quite eager to see your sister again."

Elizabeth's smile in response to his question was warm and genuine.

"Yes, you may, Mr. Dar...Fitzwilliam."

Darcy looked down at the ground.

"On another matter, Elizabeth, I will be consulting with my attorney in London early next week concerning the financial arrangements to be made in anticipation of our marriage. I will be settling a considerable sum on you, in addition to a suitable property for your mother and sisters."

Elizabeth had the good grace to blush.

"Really, Sir, it is not necessary so early in our engagement..."

"Yes, Elizabeth, it is. I gave you my word that matters would be arranged to your satisfaction, and I intend to keep it."

Elizabeth, suddenly ashamed, could not meet his eyes. He reached down to take her chin into his hands and gently tilted it up so that she was forced to look at him.
"Elizabeth. I have no hesitation in doing what you request. I still believe I am getting the better of this bargain, my dear."

Her expression was so troubled that he wanted nothing more than to bend down to kiss her lips. But he resisted the impulse, sure that the gesture would be an unwelcome one.

He offered her his arm instead, and after a moment's hesitation, she took it. He unconsciously brought his arm tightly to his body, so that her forearm was effectively secured against the side of his chest. With Darcy intentionally slowing his pace so that he might prolong the moments he could feel Elizabeth's touch, they began to walk back to the house.

On the following evening, Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley called upon the Bennets at Longbourn. Mrs. Bennet was quite in awe of her future son-in-law, while Mr. Bennet eyed him with near belligerence. To his mind, had he done h...

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